Sunday

Ohio State begins the second half of its Big Ten schedule tied for first place with defending champion Maryland and ranked No. 7 in both major polls.

Co-captain Ameryst Alston counts neither as a surprise.

'We definitely came into the year confident, as you should,' she said. 'I would say the great thing about us is that we can be even better, especially defensively. Even offensively, we can be better.'

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The latter observation might seem odd since the Buckeyes (16-4, 8-1) are averaging a robust 85.5 points per game.

'Sometimes we struggle in the first half offensively and we turn it up in the second half,' said Alston, noting the late surge on Thursday that led to a 76-73 win over Northwestern.

Next in line is Illinois (8-12, 1-8) tonight in Champaign. The Illini record doesn't matter to Alston.

'It's hard to play over there,' she said. 'Their (zone) is wide. You have to attack and they really get into the passing lanes. So you have to come meet the ball and be careful of your passes. But you can't base a team off their record. They're going to play hard.'

Coach Kevin McGuff has talked often to the Buckeyes about the danger that lurks within the conference, especially on the road.

'We've beaten some really good teams,' he said. 'This league is as good and as deep as it's been in a long time. We fared well in the first half. We still need to get better and be prepared for the second half.'

The Buckeyes own a signature 80-71 win at Maryland on Jan. 2. It remains the only Big Ten loss for the Terrapins since they joined the conference in 2014-15. That is ancient history to McGuff.

'We're still trying to reach our potential,' he said. 'Defensively, the rebounding is still inconsistent. Offensively, we have some spectacular nights. Then we have some nights where we don't move the ball as well.

'But I would think that any team that is truly committed to reaching its potential probably is thinking the same thing.'

Illinois is as far as McGuff is looking.

'They beat us there last year because they outplayed us,' he said. 'If you don't show up ready to go, you're not going to win.'

jmassie@dispatch.com

@MassDispatch

Ohio State begins the second half of its Big Ten schedule tied for first place with defending champion Maryland and ranked No. 7 in both major polls.

Co-captain Ameryst Alston counts neither as a surprise.

'We definitely came into the year confident, as you should,' she said. 'I would say the great thing about us is that we can be even better, especially defensively. Even offensively, we can be better.'

>> Check out BuckeyeXtra on Facebook

The latter observation might seem odd since the Buckeyes (16-4, 8-1) are averaging a robust 85.5 points per game.

'Sometimes we struggle in the first half offensively and we turn it up in the second half,' said Alston, noting the late surge on Thursday that led to a 76-73 win over Northwestern.

Next in line is Illinois (8-12, 1-8) tonight in Champaign. The Illini record doesn't matter to Alston.

'It's hard to play over there,' she said. 'Their (zone) is wide. You have to attack and they really get into the passing lanes. So you have to come meet the ball and be careful of your passes. But you can't base a team off their record. They're going to play hard.'

Coach Kevin McGuff has talked often to the Buckeyes about the danger that lurks within the conference, especially on the road.

'We've beaten some really good teams,' he said. 'This league is as good and as deep as it's been in a long time. We fared well in the first half. We still need to get better and be prepared for the second half.'

The Buckeyes own a signature 80-71 win at Maryland on Jan. 2. It remains the only Big Ten loss for the Terrapins since they joined the conference in 2014-15. That is ancient history to McGuff.

'We're still trying to reach our potential,' he said. 'Defensively, the rebounding is still inconsistent. Offensively, we have some spectacular nights. Then we have some nights where we don't move the ball as well.

'But I would think that any team that is truly committed to reaching its potential probably is thinking the same thing.'

Illinois is as far as McGuff is looking.

'They beat us there last year because they outplayed us,' he said. 'If you don't show up ready to go, you're not going to win.'

jmassie@dispatch.com

@MassDispatch

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